A Change in Fate
by d7-Poet
Summary: What would happen if Squall grew up with two loving parents and a wonderful big sister.  What would happen if Rinoa's past turned her into the seemingly unloving introverted loner?  Who knows?  I do!  Why?  Because I wrote the story!  Duh!
1. Rinoa 'Heartilly' Caraway

What if things happened a little differently? What if Rinoa and Squall personalities swapped? Squall grew up with Laguna, Raine and Ellone in Winhill? What if Rinoa grew up to be the introverted loner that we know as Squall? Would things still turn out the same in this parallel universe?   
  
BTW, I don't own FF8, that's Squaresoft, however the role reversal and new personalities/characters are all mine, mine, MINE! I'm a greedy little child.  
  
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A Change in Fate  
  
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"Shhh...please. Oh, please! Shhh..." Her voice wavered as she frantically tried to calm her sobbing infant. "Please, please be good for mama." She pleaded, rocking her daughter, her only child, in her trembling arms. She tried to be strong, but deep down she was scared for her life, and infants have the innate ability to sense fear.  
  
Just as the girl's wails began to subside, there came the distinct sound of shattering glass from the hallway, which only succeeded in causing the child to cry even louded. This was followed by the sound of heavy footsteps falling in the steady beat of a soldier's march. Each step brough him closer and closer to the woman and her baby.   
  
For a moment the footsteps ceased. She could feel him standing there, waiting outside the closet door with a smirk on his face. 'Don't worry. Somehow this will all be okay.' She told herself. 'It's probably all your imagination. Silly girl. I bet he's downstairs right now, making tea and ready to forget this whole mess. Maybe he gave up, and it will all be okay. Or perhaps,' she thought with a shiver, 'This is just the calm before the storm.'   
  
Then suddenly she became aware of the tingling sensation in her fingers that was slowly making it's way up her left arm. But she dared not move, lest she give away her hiding spot. Time seemed to crawl by, and the tingling grew stronger and stronger until she could bear the burning no longer. At last she gave in to the pain and shifted her position admist the shoes and ties. However, the sudden, rough movement startled her baby, who let out the faintest of whimpers.  
  
"No, please! God...no!" she screamed as the closet door, her only cover, was ripped out of the wall. Then the child was torn from her arms.   
  
"NO!" she shrieked with a sudden rage. She rose to her full height, head and shoulders shorter than this man, but her eyes flared with determination and for a moment she seemed to tower over him. It was in this moment that she raised her hand and slapped him across the face...hard. He raised his own hand and caressed the place she struck his cheek. Then without a word, he turned his back and began to walk away.   
  
Moments before he reached the doorway he felt her clawing at his back. Biting, scratching, pulling, doing anything do distract him. She leaped on his back and let her nails sink into his flesh. He howled with pain as he tried, unsuccesfully, to remove the screaming woman from his back. For a moment the man stopped struggling, and in turn the woman loosened her grip only to be forcefully rammed into the wall.   
  
She fell to the floor as he placed the babe in a nearby armchair. Somehow with a strength beyond her own, the woman managed to scramble to her feet and attempted to strike him again, but this time he caught her wrist and squeezed it. He did not let go until she collapsed from the pain, the bruises already darkening.   
  
His eyes were like those of a wolf looking upon its prey. He did not blink and she could not meet his eyes. Instead she began to sob uncontrollably. He grabbed her jaw and forced her to meet his eyes. She resisted the only way she could. She closed her eyes, but was met with a swift smack across the face. She spat at him, but was reprimanded with a blow to her stomach.   
  
Watching her writhe in pain gave him pleasure as he felt power surge through his body. He punched her, kicked her, stomped on her face. With every blow, the smile on his face only widened.  
  
At first his punches were painful, almost paralyzing, but soont he pain dulled, and then...then she felt nothing. Her breath became shallow and irregular. Then, it didn't come at all.  
  
As her body went limp, his attacks became less brutal. His arms failed wildly and without power. And he didn't know why, but he began to cry.   
  
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I love you, daddy!  
  
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Love ya, buhbye!  
  
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You never let me do anything!  
  
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I hate you, daddy!  
  
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I HATE YOU, CARAWAY!  
  
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I HATE YOU!   
  
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I WISH YOU WOULD DIE!  
  
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.......  
  
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General Caraway thought about the last words he heard from his daughter. 'I wish you would die...' He had always tried his best to please her, to protect her. He lived for her, and her alone. If she was gone, then...  
  
"Why did she feel this way? It can't be because, no...that was so long ago. It was a car accident. They were going out for a late dinner but...there was an accident. She wasn't wearing her seatbelt and...an accident. So she was ejected from the car. No one knew...It was a car accidnet. We were alone. It was a car accident. She wasn't even one. It was a car accident. It was a car accident. It was a car accident." He repeated to himself as he did so many times before, that for a second, he almost believed it. 


	2. Squall 'Leonhart' Loire

Here's chapter two! Can you tell I hate Caraway? LoL! Anyway, this is bit more cheery than the last chapter.  
  
Oh yeah, I don't FFVIII and all that fun stuff...  
  
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A Change in Fate ~ Chapter 2  
  
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"Looky Mommy! Isn't it prettiful?" the boy beamed waving a piece of construction paper in front of her face.  
  
"It's veeery prettiful!" she answered, admiring her son's artwork. "As a matter of fact, this is the most prettifulest work of art I've ever seen. If I do say so myself."  
  
"Do yoo know what it is?" the tot asked.  
  
"What do you mean 'Do yoo know what it is?'? Of course I do!" She answered matter of fact. "That must be Daddy," she continued pointint to the largest person on the page. Blue shirt, brown pants, and a big red smile. "And there's Sissy," She observed pointing to the smaller of two purple and pink people. "And there's me," she said motioning toward the larger of the two purple and pink people holding a swirl of waxy flowers. "So that means that this must be my little Squally!" She announced as she finished analying the picture. Then she grabbed Squall and began to tickle him silly.   
  
"DAADYYYYY!" He squealed with delight.  
  
Almost as if on cue (or maybe he was), Laguna came to the rescue. He ran over, scooped up his son, then 'flew' him to safely on the other side of the room. Then he jumped back into the fray to combat the evil tickle monster. The two wrestled until they were both out of breath, while Squall doubled over with a severe case of the giggles.  
  
"Why do ~I~ always miss the fun stuff?" A new voice questioned with faux anger.  
  
"ELLE!" Squall nearly screamed as he jumped up and ran over to give her the customary 'Welcome Home Hug'. Nothing less was good enough for the 'bestest sister i ebber had!'.  
  
"How was school?" Raine asked.  
  
"Oh, it was so much fun! We're going to have a play about all sorts of different animals and we each had to pick a different one and we got to make OWN masks! It was sooo much fun! Look what I made!" Proudly displaying her mask.  
  
"Ooooooo...Can I try?" Squall asked, entraced by the mask's feathered mane, pipe cleaner whiskers, button nose, and a mouth that was drawn on with extra waxy crayons.  
  
"Of course! But yoo gotta be careful 'cause I need it for the play." She said pulling the bag over his head, then watched him run around the room roaring in his best lion voice.   
  
"*ROAR* I'm a big scary lion!" He shouted between giggles.  
  
"*ROAR*" 


	3. Her Eyes

Well, this takes place later...MUCH later. Link after the SeeD test later. Oh, and for some very strange reason I still don't own FFVIII...  
  
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A Change in Fate 3  
  
"HAH! Found you! Well? WELL? What do you think!?" Selphie beamed.  
  
"Of what?" Squall teased.  
  
"You know exactly what I mean." Selphie pouted before modeling her crisp, new SeeD uniform for Squall. Selphie wasn't exactly the tallest person Squall knew, but she made up for her lack in height with her infinately high spirits. She was the sort of person who just ~looked~ like they could cheer you up, always wearing bright yellow and a smile.  
  
"Selphie, Daaah-ling. You look absolutely gorgeous." Squall complimented in his best rich, snobby voice.  
  
"You should get changed too." Selphie suggested after noticing Squall's casual dress. "We have that party to get to!"   
  
"Party? I'm all over that!" Squall said as he swiftly jumped to his feet.  
  
"Whoa, hold it buster! You gotta get chagned. SeeD uniform, here we go!" Selphie giggled as she marched Squall back into his bedroom.  
  
Squall threw on the outfit then burst out of the room with his jacket slung over his shoulder performing quite possibly the best walkway run of all time. He made it to the other side of the room before looking back over his shoulder with his best sexy glare.   
  
"Heeey! Looking' good!" Selphie giggled. "Alright! Now let's hit that PAAH-TAY!"  
  
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Squall was known to be a pretty outgoing guy, but he wasn't much of a dancer. He knew it, and so did everyone else. So once he got to the party he decided to avoid the dance floor at all costs in order to save his dignity. He spent the first few minutes floating around, socializing with his fellow SeeD members, before finally settling in by one of the marble pillars. A waitress waltzed by and offered Squall a glass of champagne which he kindly accepted with a smile and a nod. He sipped his bubbly beverage, closed his eyes, and lost himself in the music. However, the serenity was broken by Selphie's high pitched voice.  
  
"Oh...hey, Zell. Wanna join the Garden FEstival Committee and..." She began.  
  
"Sorry, I...ahhh...Just remembered something! G-Gotta go. See ya!" He interrupted before making his great escape.  
  
Selphie received the failed recruitment with a sigh then scanned the room for he next victim.  
  
"Squall! Hi! Wanna join the Garden Festival Committee?" Selphie asked, trying not to sound too frustrated.  
  
"Well..." Squall began, raking his mind for a plausable excuse. It wasn't that he didn't like Selphie, it's just that well, he didn't quite know. And that was why he was at a loss for words.  
  
"You can help out whenever you have the time." Selphie added, taking advantage of Squall's hesitation.  
  
"It's just ummm..." Squall tried again.  
  
"Please?" Selphie asked once more. She clasped her hands together under her chin and smiled just like a little kid begging her mom for ice cream. She looked so desparate and cute that Squall couldn't imagine how anyone else could turn the poor girl down.  
  
"Well, why not?" Squall replied, finally giving in.   
  
"Really!? Booyaka! Spread the word. I know we'll be busy with a lot of SeeD stuff, but let's work hard on the next Garden Festival, too! Bye!" Selphie beamed as she ran off to find the next candidate for the Garden Festival Committee. "'Scuse me! You! You right there!"  
  
While Squall watched Selphie interrogate another student, he saw another girl walk by, that he had never seen before. She wore a short, jet-black dress which accentuated the browness of her hair. Her skin was flawlessly smooth and silken. But her eyes...her eyes were always just out of sight. And for some strange reason, Squall felt compelled to look into those mysterious eyes.   
  
The woman in question, feeling a strangers gaze, turned to find her admirer. Squall quickly lowered his eyes, but coudln't help taking one more glance before she shifted his eyes once more.  
  
'Come on, Squall. Be a man. She's no T-Rexaur. What's the worst that can happen? She probably doesn't even go to this school and you'll never have to see her again if you do something stupid. Get a grip.' He said to himself before taking a deep breath and making his way toward the mystery woman.  
  
"Hey! Uhhh...you wanna dance?" He asked before realizing the horrible repercussions of that question. 'Stupid, stupid, stupid! You can't dance moron. Good going.' Squall silently scolded.  
  
"...I can't dance." She replied flatly, somehow still avoiding eye contact.  
  
'Phew!' Squall thought, mentally wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Neither can I." He replied with a sudden burst of confidence. "You'll be fine. Come on. I can't be on the dance floor alone." Squall replied dragging her onto the dance floor before she could refuse again.  
  
Once they were out on the floor, she ~almost~ thanked her father for all those dance lessons he forced her into. Squall stumbled over his feet (and hers) more than once, while the mystery woman politely corrected him. After a bit of bumping, Squall finally started to get the hang of it. However, the two still managed to crash into a nearby couple who gave them a dirty look. This mystery woman smiled, probably for the first time all night, and Squall finally caught her eyes. They weren't a stunning blue, or even green, but there was just something mesmerizing about those eyes. They were a million shades of brown all at the same time, and yet, they were only one steady color. They were beautiful. Then he blinked, and she was gone. 


	4. To Timber!

Sorry to inform you that I still don't own FF8 and all that fun stuff  
  
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A Change in Fate 4  
  
Outside of Garden, Selphie, Cid, a Garden faculty member and Squall all await the 'almighty' Zell's arrival.  
  
"...One more minute..." The faculty member snarled between clenched teeth.  
  
His words were followed by the unmistakeable hum of Zell's brand new T-Board.  
  
"Made it!" Zell exclaimed, obviously relieved that the team didn't leave without him on his first SeeD mission.  
  
"T-Boards are prohibited within Garden. Have you forgotten?" The faculty member scolded.  
  
"Oops, sorry! B-but this is ~really~ cool. It may come in handy on a SeeD mission someday." Zell whined, stomping his feet and hanging his head.  
  
"We'll be the judges of that. Confiscate it." The faculty member retorted snatching the board from Zell's hands. Then another faculty member, identical to the first, carried it away to some unknown location.   
  
"All of you are members of SeeD," the first said, "but, nevertheless, you're still students at this Garden. Furthermore, because you are SeeDs, you must set an example to all others and abide by the Garden's rules. Understood!?"  
  
"Well," Cid interrupted before any member of the trio had a chance to answer, "about you first mission. You are to go to Timber. There you will be supporting a resistance faction. That is your mission. A member of the faction will contact you at the Timber Station."  
  
"This person will talk to you and say, 'the forests of Timber sure have changed'. At this time you must reply, 'But the owls are still around'. That is the password" The faculty member added.  
  
"Just follow the Faction's orders." Cid continued.  
  
After Cid's last comment Zell took a double take on the size of the group. "Uh...Just us three?" He asked nervously.  
  
"Correct." The faculty member sighed as if he had explained the same thing at least ten times before. "We have agreed to do this mision for very little money. Normally, we would never accept such requests, but..."  
  
"Enough talk about that." Cid interrupted abruptly. "Well then, Squall, you are the squad leader. Use your best judgement based on the situation." He continued looking over Squall like a man looks at his opponent moments before a battle. Then he turned his attention to the other two members of the team. "Zell and Selphie, you are to support Squall and give your all to carry out the faction's plans." Cid then looked each member in the eye as if to say, 'I'm counting on you' before he turned to follow the faculty member, who had already taken his leave of the meeting.  
  
Selphie gave one of her trademark winks to the group before sprinting toward the front gate of Balamb Garden with Zell right on her heels. Squall hesitated for one moment, an image of those mesmerizing eyes. While lost in thought, Cid walked over to the day-dreaming squad leader.  
  
"Oh, and Squall, I forgot to give you this." He said handing him an old bronze lamp. "It's a cursed item," he added, seeing the baffled look on Squall's face, "but if one with enough power uses it, it should be of great help."  
  
"Thank you..." Squall replied, still confused as to what was going on.   
  
"Best of luck on your first mission." Cid said as he disappeared inside of Balamb Garden.  
  
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"The train to Timber is here." Announced the Balamb Station staff member.   
  
"Three tickets to Timber, please." Squall politely requested.  
  
"That will be 1,500 Gil each please." The staff member answered.  
  
"Oh, I forgot. We're SeeD members. Sorry, it's our first mission." Squall added, holding up his SeeD identification card.   
  
"Don't worry about it." The staff member replied. " It happens to the best of us. Let's see...after the SeeD discount it comes to a grand total of 3,000 Gil."   
  
"Here you go!" Squall said handing over exactly 3,000 Gil.   
  
"Please go inside right away. The train to Timber will be leaving shortly." The station master advised. "Oh! Good luck with your mission!"  
  
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"This train is awesome!" Selphie beamed as she stepped onto the train.  
  
"A transcontinental railroad, baby!" Zell replied in his usual 'know-it-all' voice. "It even runs through an underwater tunnel to get to Timber. Pretty cool, huh?"  
  
"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens, transcontinental railroads make me sing because it is one of my favorite things." Squall sang poking fun at Zell who had red, not so slowly creeping into this cheeks.  
  
"You have to use the ticket to get inside." Zell said, obviously hurt by Squall's playful antics.  
  
Squall pulled out his tickets and swiped it through the reader to the side of the door. Even before he could re-pocket the tickets Selphie flew the door shouting, "I'm gonna go check out the front!"  
  
The baffled Squall didn't know what to do except follow Zell after he suggested entering the door. Once inside the SeeD cabin Zell immediately forgot all about Squall's song and Squall lingered outside of the cabin to hear Selphie sing her own.  
  
"Train Train Take Us Away  
  
Take Us Away Far Away  
  
To the Future We will Go  
  
Where It Leads No One Knows"  
  
After a few minutes Squall decided to join his other teammate in the SeeD cabin. He opened the door to find Zell bouncing on the cushions like a three-year old jumping on his first 'real' bed. "Heh-heh. This is sooo cool!" he exclaimed when Squall walked through the door.  
  
"I'm glad you're so excited!" Squall replied with a sly looking smile on his face.  
  
"They even have magazines here." Zell beamed handing Squall a copy of 'Pet Pals' Magazine. Squall had no idea what he was going to do with it, seeing as how he didn't have a pet, but decided to hang onto it anyway. "This is pretty damn amazing. It pays to be a member of SeeD! So...do y'know anything about Timber?"  
  
"Well you're going to tell me whether I want to hear it or not, so let's get it over with." the squad leader added with one of his charismatic smiles.   
  
"You betcha! Anyway, Timber used to be a country surrounded by deep forests, but 18 years ago, Galbadia invaded. Timber fell quite easily to Galbadia. So now Timber is under Galbadian occupation. It's said there's a whole bunch of resistance factions big and small." Zell recited with his usual matter-of-fact tone.  
  
"...And?" Squall asked waiting for the end.  
  
"Nope, that's it." Zell said, wiped clean of useless trivia for this particular occasion.  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Know-It-All-Zell!" Squall added with a salute.  
  
"Hey, no prob!" Zell replied returning the salute.  
  
"So, what are you guys up to?" Selphie demanded as she walked into the cabin and the two boys just looked at each other and cracked up laughing.  
  
"Hey what's so funny?" Selphie pouted, with her hands on her hips, but was interrupted by the PA announcing their arrival at Timber. 


End file.
